man's trash is man's cows to power his farm. that does it for us. up next is lester holtz with nightly news. . breaking news tonight, the disturbing new allegations against an american airlines mechanic he was accused of sabotaging a passenger plane. now he may have ties to isis. the gruesome video they say was found on his phone. also tonight secretary of state mike pompeo arriving in saudi arabia, labeng the attack saudi. the saudis accusing iran of sponsoring the strike and what president trump is saying about possible u.s. military action. the tropical threats we're tracking six named storms, a tropical depression still pounding texas growing flash floods fears. millions on alert

tonight. the new arrest 14 three separate alleged school shooting threats and tonight the chilling new psa. >> the back to school warning from sandy hook parents the new alert, the killer disease carried by mosquitos health officials in one state urging outdoor events be canceled who experts say is most at risk and the football fan whose plea for beer money on tv turned into something so much more. this is nbc "nightly news" with lester holt. good evening, everyone disturbing new questions tonight over the recent arrest of a passenger e.t first glance appeared to be what appeared to be collect work and work over time is getting a second look. exposing a weak spot in aviation security

our justice correspondent pete williams had late details. >> reporter: when they searched the phone of an american airlines mechanic, they showed an isis video of people being killed. he wished that ala would use his devine powers to harm non-muslims. the nudge called the new evidence disconcerting and said it suggests the mechanic could be sympathetic to terrorists >> reporter: he was arrested two weeks ago charged with tampering with a flight sensor on an american 737 he told investigators he did it as part dispute to fr he went into the plane's cockpit to make sure it would show up on the instrument panel, so the flight never took t o work a

maintenance here. >> reporter: he is 60, tu citizen born in iran he has been an airline mechanic for 30 years. american says tonight safety is its top priority and he's been fired. the backgrounds of people who service airplanes on the ground at airports worldwide has long been a security concern. >> that requires ongoing monitoring, ongoing security checks and background checks of all those touching the aircraft and airport security. >> reporter: officials say tonight while the discovery of the isis material on the mechanics phone is disturbing, it is still possible he tampered with the plane just to get overtime now they're investigating whether his motives were more complicated. his lawyer says he never intentionally put people in danger. >> pete, thank you. also breaking this evening, new fall-out after the attack on the saudi oil field, the secretary of state calling it an act of war and saudi arabia

showcasing what it says is the evidence andrea mitchell has late developments for us. >> reporter: tonight saudi arabia showing the world what it says is evidence iran launched attacks debris from cruise miss sills and drones. iran denies it but secretary of state mike pompeo is calling it an act of war saying u.s. intelligence now has high confidenc iranian attack. president trump's response today were economic sanctions agt re a lot less than that and we'll see. we're in a very powerful position. right now we're in a very, very powerful positions. >> reporter: but sanctions alone are not enough. >> if they don't pay a price for bombing a neighbor's oil fields, then all hell is going to break out in the mideast. >> repr:trying to rally a coalition to counter iran diplomatically. experts say they're vulnerable the cruise missiles and drones got past

saudi air defenses costing a billion dollars each any saudi strike against iran would trigger a counter attack. >> this is not something we want to go to war over the iranians don't want to go with us we don't want to go to war with iran. i don't think the saudis want to go to war with the iranians. >> reporter: the u.s. crippled iran's economy, but now it could crack down on iran's black market oil fields to syria and china. >> andrea mitchell, thank you. there is harsh new criticism of president trump's foreign policy ght om john bolton, the man he ousted as his national security adviser e house. n bolton never mentions the president by name. but tonight he is unleashing on the commander in chief, harshly criticizing his foreign policy at a private lunch-in today. bolton blasting the

president's now scrapped idea to invite the taliban for peace talks at camp david and sending, a quote, terrible signal and slamming negotiations with north korea and iran as, quote, doomed to failure. bolton taking these shots a week after he was ousted the president said he clashed numerous times with the hoggish bolton robert o'brian was working in the state department and late tonight the president responding to bolton blasting his support for the iraq war and sang him. >> now to the price you pay that the again saying while the economy remains strong there are risks. today's cut will lower rates on a range of consumer loans president trump wanted a bigger cut saying the fed rare chan had, quote, no guts parts of texas and louisiana getting hit tonight by tropical decision as much as 21 inches

of rain fell in southeast texas triggering dangerous flash floods a lot more rain still to come with millions still under flash flood watches tonight. dillon is tracking the storm for us and five others brewing who is at risk here? >> reporter: the tropics are so active right now. we have six named storms three in the pacific, three in the atlantic. the one we are focussing on is imelda it is producing massive amounts of rain south of houston, we have already had reports of rainches. the flooding is. we are going to see this last through friday with rain fall rates of one to three inches per hour. from here on out, most of the rain will be falling across eastern texas. and again storm tote ms over 20 min cinches, an that lasts through friday. here in las vegas a democratic donor is under arrest tonight he gave dangerous drugs to men and

preyed on them as they overdosed. he is under investigation for playing a role in the deaths of two men and nearly killing a third. here is miguel. >> reporter: the overnight arrest of a well known political advocate prosecutors say he is a sexual predator who mainly preys on men made vulnerable by addiction and homelessness twice this month here at his home he's been charged with injecting a 37-year-d man with methamphetamine. he overdosed wtwo time but arrested these tw inside his apartment from overdoses in the last two years >> arrest! special treatment because of his political connections. tonight relief for one of the victim's mother. >> my child is not here i can't protect him anymore. so the best thing i can do is get justice.

>> reporter: facing narcotics and battery charges as well as managing a drug house, he is being held on $40 million in jail. his attorney making in comment. tonight after the death of two men and a near fatale overdose of a third, an arrest now made in a case involving sex, money, drugs and politics nbc news west hollywood. breaking news tonight. word of fourteens arrested for three separate school shooting threats in wisconsin and west virginia and with schools on edge, a group formed after the sandy hook massacre has released a shocking new psa kate snow has it for us we got to warn you, it t me theupsetting to perfect bag for back to school. >> it's been watched by seven million for this morning kids showing off their back to school gear and then using those items to escape from an active shooter.

>> it's pretty cool! >> reporter: the psa cull min nates with a girl hiding from a shooter in the bathroom texting her mom, i love you. nicole lost her son dillon at sandy hook. >> why do a psa that is hard to watch we don't people to turn away from it pretending it doesn't exist. it's not helping to solve it >> these can be a real lifesaver. >> reporter: the psa tweeted out by nearly every democrat for president today. bill bar talking about a proposal to expand background checks on some gun sales, though the president hayet gned off o >> there are a lot of people in the administration that are suppor>> reporter: communiy members are stopping attacks. a 17-year-old in wisconsin and three teens in west virginia arrested for

threatening to kill people at school, joining a list of a dozen teens arrested so far this school year for making threats. sandy hook teaches students and parents signs to look for. >> reporter: you stopped things from happening? >> yes without a doubt we have it is also heart-breaking at the same time because it l e for us. >> and certainly making an impact for almost 50 years lawmakers here in california have been able to set their own car emissions standards. but today president trump threatened to change all that. nbc ann thompson on the potential impact across the country. >> reporter: california long led the way in reducing tail pipe e motions and increasing fueclean its air and fight climate change now the trump administration wants to bring that to a stop, revoking california's ability to set its own emissions standards in favor of one national mark state officials warn of dire consequences. >> millions of people in california and

other states that follow our standards will be breathing dirtier air. >> reporter: leading, they say, to more asthma, hospitalizations and premature deaths president trump tweeted the change would make cars cheeper and safer and told auto makers to seize this opportunity because without this alternative to california, you will be out of business four auto makers, ford, bmw, honda and volkswagon already agreed to california's stricter standards 50 miles per galloidt trump's investigation and say are under federal they are either cooperating or in touch with authorities. california promises to fight. >> if they're not willing to do their job, we'll do it for them in court. >> reporter: igniting an environmental civil war over how much vehicles should pollute. ann thompson nbc news. also here in california, president trump on a political fund-raising tour says his administration is considering taking action to deal with

the worsening homelessness crisis that left thousands living on the streets of los angeles i got reaction to that from l.a.'s mayor and spent some time talking to people at the heart of the crisis tonight, they're the images alarming california in l.a., the homeless on places like the hollywood walk of fame and along the iconic venice boardeporter: what was confined to skid row can now be seen all across los angeles, hundreds of homeless encampments have strung sprung up. >> it is like the world is caving in on you. this is our room. >> thomas lost his home when he lost his job. he moved into his car with his two kids. >> i ended up coming up with a game. >> i know this is hard. >> i would tell my children that we were going camping. they were like, dad, we're going camping again?

and i would say yeah just because i didn't want them to feel what i felt>>, he family now lives in this shelter. while many homeless struggle with substance abuse and mental illness, for thomas and many others, it's purely economic they can't afford the rent >> show me where youlive >> sure. >> we met this 65-year-old at her tent. >> did you ever in your wildest dreams imagine that you could end up livingon the streets? >> no, never. >> homelessness in l.a. has jumped 16% in a year half of americans living on the streets are in california. it sparked concerns about safety and sanitation. >> how many homeless encampments are you seeing in los angeles. >> a little shy of 700. >> the mayor calls it a crisis authorities here spent over $600 million on

the issue last year and have more than doubled the number of people housed since 2015 but they have failed to keep pace with demand. >> have you done a self-review of your role in this >> absolutely. we do all the time. >> look at los angeles with the tents and the horrible, horrible, disgusting conditions. >> president trump blames this blue state's democratic leadership. >> how do you react to that >> this is not a partisan issue at all. conservatives didn't itts t, you know, >> tonight thas and his kids are feeling they have been left behind >> i had a good job. we had a home. anybody can become homeless. >> it's a profound thought. the mayor says within the next ten months l.a. will have opened 29 new homeless shelters but is helping those on the verge of homelessness before they end up on the streets. we have a lot more still ahead tonight.

a deadly mosquito virus blaming another victim people being warned to stay inside at night. also breaking news on the grounded boeing jets what the new head of the faa is saying he will do before they return to the skies. we hope you can stay with us. events

outside after more deaths from a rare virus being spread by mosquito in several states here's ron. >> reporter: this 66-year-old died just over a week after being diagnosed with a virus carried by a mosquito. >> within a matter of nine days, he went from perfectly healthy to brain dead. >> reporter: his death the third reported fatality in michigan. >> this is dangerous. >> reporter: nationwide triple e emerging in five states with 22 confirmed cases and 5 deaths, triple the cases from last year.

>> we know we can't quarantine people. >> reporter: health officials in michigan urging all outdoor events after dusk be canceled or rescheduled like football games. >> that's when this particular type of mosquito is most prevalent. in the event that you can't do under 15 and over 50 are most at risk the first symptoms include forever, headache and chills. then develop a brain infection that kills one out of three in rhode island, this six-year-old star jackson fortunately recovered. growing fears about a rare disease waiting for first frost to kill the mosquito who carry it up next, breaking news from the new head of the faa what he says about returning the 737 max to the skies

tonight the new head of the faa, an experienced pilot is making news telling tom kos tell low he will not give the approval for the 737

to return to the air until he has personally piloted the airplane tom is in las vegas tonight us. >> reporter: it has been grounded since last march after two fatale crashes killed people overseas. boeing is expected to submit a software package for approval within weeksbut now the ne former fighter pilot and delta airlines pilot says he personally will ensure this plane is safe before it flies again. >> i'm not going to sign off on the aircraft until i would fly it myself or put my own family on it. >> reporter: you will fly the max before you certify the plane? >> i will fly the max. >> he's talking about as a pilot lester >> tom, thanks. how one college student's plea for beer money led to an outpouring of support for those in need.

recycling waste. how this local farmer is finding fuel for his farm in an unlikely place, next. in tonight's inspiring america, how a young man who likes his beer pulled a stunt that's turned out to help his community in a big way. here is kevin tibls. >> reporter: during a college football pregame show, carson king raised his crudely drawn plea. >> i thought it was a joke. >> reporter: the 24-year-old wrote in sharpie. his grammar, not fine. adding the handle for his cash sharing account. >> my mom was like, oh, this is going to be a proud mom moment. >> reporter: well, faster than you can say suds, beer money poured him. >> i had people from texas, idaho, a lot of clemson people donated. >> reporter: after two ground, carson decided

to donate, minus the cost of a case of beer to the children's where during hom the kids the last count upwards of busch beerd it inspiring, tweeting, we're going to match your donation and throw in some busch light. venmo joined the party saying it too would match the donations. well, cheers to that and that's "nightly news" for this wednesday. right now at 6:00, a failing grade. santa clara says the 49ers aren't holding up to their end of the bargain. the legal action the city is now taking to take more control of levi's stadium. plus the latest presidential candidate to swing by the bay area.

beto o'rourke's message in front of san quentin prison. plus, the rajmathai. california is now pushing back after the president makes good >> and i'm jessica aguirre. on a long-time threat. president trump confirming today that the epa will be rolling back california's ability to set its own auto emissions standards. >> this is significant not only here in california, but for the auto industry and for climate change. our business and tech reporter scott budman joins us now with the details. what's happening here? >> reporter: the president says removing california standards, which have been adopted by more than a dozen other states, will create more jobs and lower the price of vehicles. a claim he laid out this morning in this tweet reading "the trump administration is revoking california's federal waiver on emissions to produce less spiff c expensive cars for the consumer while at the same time making the car safer. it didn't take long for california leaders to snap back. in a press conference this morning, governor gavin newsom

blasted the move, saying it's a matter of health and promising to take the president to court. now there is history here. for 50 years the